Signs That You Need a Dental Emergency

September 16, 2019, Glendale Dental Group

Your dental and oral health plays a huge part in your overall well-being and can indicate the quality of your life.

Maintaining your teeth, gums, and tongue is a good thing. But a trip to the dentist can improve your dental health in more ways than one.

Your dentist can detect any problems that you might not see; preventing the need for an emergency dental care procedure is one of them.

But when exactly do you need emergency dental care?

Many other symptoms might arise when you're dealing with a tooth problem. Emergency dental care may be the best solution if you're dealing with the following:

Headaches
Headaches can be excruciating -- disabling, even, to some. But oftentimes, people fail to link headaches with a dental problem and just disregard it. After all, if it's really a dental problem, then it should be your tooth that's aching, right?

Dental problems can cause a headache. Bruxism, or grinding your teeth, can be one of the reasons. While it's often associated with emotional stress, bruxers, or the people who suffer from it, can unconsciously grind their teeth and sometimes bite too hard. Dentists often treat this condition by providing a mouth guard to the patient.

On the other hand, TMJ Disorder (TMJD/TMD), or Temporomandibular Joint Disorder, is a more severe condition. It, too, can be a major cause of your headache.

TMJ is a joint that connects to your skull. If that specific joint is damaged, causing you to experience headaches, then a dental emergency care is needed. Other symptoms of TMJ disorder are hearing loss, neck pain, and dizziness.

Additionally, cavities can also cause headaches.

Jaw Pain
Other than headaches, dysfunction in your TMJ can also cause jaw pain, but an impacted wisdom tooth may also be the source of your discomfort.

Though almost everyone will eventually grow a third set of molars, some people will only have partially erupted wisdom teeth -- the rest of it remain buried under the gums.

Not everyone with an impacted wisdom tooth will experience pain and discomfort. However, those who suffer from it may find it extremely painful. When this happens, your dentist may have to extract your wisdom teeth.

Abscess
The bacteria in your mouth feed off the sugar and leave a substance called plaque. Over time, the plaque will break down the enamel that protects your tooth - eventually leading to cavities.

Cavities, if left untreated, can sometimes develop an abscess.

An abscess is an indication of infection; it is crucial to have it checked by a dentist even before any symptoms manifest. If you're already suffering from a toothache caused by an abscess, however, visiting dentist for treatment is your best option.

Your dentist may drain it and prescribe you some antibiotics, but they may also recommend a root canal procedure as a long-term solution.

Excessive Bleeding
Undergoing a dental procedure can cause your teeth or gums to bleed.

Post-operative patients typically experience bleeding. However, if it becomes uncontrollable to manage at home, seek your dentist's attention immediately.

The dentist will probably perform a series of tests to determine the root cause. X-Ray and CBC are also usually done to rule out other diseases that can possibly contribute to the bleeding.

Other than post-dental procedure incidents, trauma and gum diseases can also cause excessive bleeding.

If your teeth or gums are bleeding profusely, it is important to avoid tobacco and Aspirin as they can make the symptoms worse.

Dental health is often neglected. But the importance of your dental and oral health extends beyond brushing your teeth and making sure that no traces of food get stuck in between them. Whether or not you're experiencing a tooth or gum problem, seeing your dentist is still the best solution.

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